The Aviva Stadium was not available due to pitch renovations, and Tallaght Stadium was also unavailable due to Shamrock Rovers’ Champions League first qualifying round tie against Icelandic side Knattspyrnufélagið Víkingur this week.
Nevertheless, 18,000 fans saw Denise O'Sullivan, Julie Ann Russell, and Anna Patten help Ireland record a famous victory over France in Cork's GAA stadium.
O'Sullivan, who is a Cork native, is keen for more games to be held in her native county going forward.
"The cheer was unbelievable. I think I zoned out; honestly, I was just absolutely buzzing. I grew up in this city. The city has done a lot for me, so to play here in Cork is phenomenal," said the Irish midfielder.
"I think we should be playing here more often; they should be a bit more spread out. The fans were amazing.
"There were 18,000 there, but it sounded like there were a lot more because they just never stopped. It gave me a lot of energy, and they’ve been fantastic.
"When I heard that we were going to be playing here, I was absolutely buzzing. As I said, I think there should be more games here; the fans were absolutely fantastic tonight."
DENISE O'SULLIVAN. BOOM. pic.twitter.com/R1w9iu27sH
— SHE scores bangers (@SHEscoresbanger) July 16, 2024
O'Sullivan, one of Ireland's senior players, also admitted that Colin Healy, another Cork legend, told her that she would find the back of the net in Cork this week. O'Sullivan admits she was delighted to keep her end of the bargain.
"To score here in Cork, it was written in the stars.
"Colin Healy said to me before the game, "Denise, you’re going to score tonight."I said, "Yeah, I will.". We just both smiled and walked off.
"Yeah, it was unbelievable to do it in front of my family and, more importantly, beat a world-class team.
"To do it in front of my family... my partner is over from America as well, and it’s his birthday, so to get a goal for him on his birthday was very special. I’m absolutely buzzing."
The Cork and Ireland star is now keen to return to America for a reset.
"I think hanging out with the family is the most important thing. I’ll be heading back to America in a few days, so some downtime is needed for sure—a bit of a reset."
